Innovation
The Reason Why Honda’s Corporate Color Is Red. Behind-the-scenes Stories on How Japan’s First Red Car and Products Painted in Bright Red Were Born
Vivid red used in the Honda logo is actually a corporate color uniquely designated by Honda as the “Honda Red.” As 2023 marks Honda’s 75th anniversary since its establishment, Honda has added a Honda Red colored pencil to its official novelty lineup and made it available for sale since October 2023, in order to see the Honda Red in a fresh light and spread it further. Why does Honda cherish the red color in the first place? This article will unveil the answer to the question through an episode on the first red sports car sold in Japan and behind-the-scenes story of bright red power product development.
“Honda Brand Colored Pencil” available for sale since October 2023
Once cars were not allowed in red or white in Japan. What were Honda’s tactics to revise the regulation?
Cars in red or white can be observed in numbers all over Japan. Did you know that it was once prohibited by law to sell cars with their bodies painted in red or white in Japan? In fact, it was Honda which led this regulation to revision in 1960s. Let’s find out how Honda did it starting from an episode of its foray into automobile production.
The first red painted car sold in Japan, the S500
In the 1950s, still in the process of growth, Japan’s automobile industry was lagging behind other nations such as the United States. The Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI, currently Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) announced the “National Car Concept” under which auto makers competed with each other to introduce automobiles that met the conditions set out by the ministry: four-seater, maximum speed of 100 km/hour, and sales price of 150,000 yen. Honda as well, a motorcycle manufacturer back then, started gathering young engineers to undertake development to venture into the automobile market.
However, while the development was still in process, MITI set forth a basic automotive administrative policy (later Law for Temporary Measures to Promote Specified Industries). The measures were meant for abolition/consolidation of automobile manufacturers and restriction on entries of new makers. In short, Honda was cornered to the point where it would not have been able to make a foray into the automobile industry if the measures had passed.
Although Soichiro Honda resisted it in the belief that free competition nurtures an industry, moves toward submission of the measures did not change. Therefore, Honda had to speed up design and development of two types of four-wheeled sports cars and two types of mini trucks, in order to have an automobile production history before the passing of the measures.
This is how Japan’s first red car was born! Honda’s ruling passion toward red.
A styling designer at that time painted a prototype of the SPORTS 360 in reddish orange to make it stand out just little bit more. As Soichiro Honda liked it when he saw it, he gave it a go-ahead to adopt the red color on the next new model.
But back then in Japan, due to the fact that red vehicles could be confused with emergency vehicles such as fire engines and ambulances, using red on car bodies for the domestic market was restricted by law.
Soichiro Honda appealed through a newspaper column: Red is a basic color of design. How can they ban it by law? I have heard of no other top nations in the world in which the state monopolizes the use of colors. And Honda’s person in charge paid frequent visits to the Ministry of Transport (currently Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport) to finally obtain approval to use red.
The SPORTS 360 ended up not being sold, but another slightly larger sports car that had been simultaneously developed was brought out under the name of the S500. The new model attracted huge interest. Its pre-release campaign quiz, specifically the “Guess the price” quiz, published in newspapers received more than 5 million entries. This was how Honda launched mass production of automobiles, taking advantage of its motorcycle production equipment.
By the way, as for the basic automotive administrative policy which had prompted Honda to embark on the automobile development, it did not pass in the end and was eventually scrapped. For Honda, however, this challenge was never a meaningless one. Not only did it result in the venture into the automobile market, but development technologies and the “red car” were also bequeathed as significant assets.
“Honda Whirlwind” provoked by a bright red product
Aside from automobile and motorcycle production, Honda leverages its engine technologies cultivated in mobility product development to manufacture power equipment essential for life and work, such as tillers, generators, snow blowers, and lawn mowers.
The key color for these power products is also red. Although nowadays red products are associated with Honda, and bright red Hondas can be seen all over the world, Honda was not a leading company like now in the industry from the beginning.
Just like the automobile development described earlier, Honda was a follower company in any of its domains. How could such a company create a sensation in the world? And, why does Honda use red on its power equipment? The answers are found in the history of Honda products.
In 1952 Honda launched the “Cub Type F”, which was an auxiliary motor that could be retrofitted to a bicycle. Its catch phrase was “White tank, red engine.” Owing to its small and light-weight design and the fresh styling, the product became popular, spreading an image that the "Honda’s engine is red.”
“Cub Type F”. Are white tank and red engine the origin of the Honda Red?
Even though no document remains now to confirm it, it is thought that that image had been reflected to the “F150”, Honda’s first tiller when it was introduced in the market painted bright red. The user-centric F150, filled with innovative ideas, achieved explosive sales in the market where numerous competitors’ similar products had already existed, earning it the title of “Honda Whirlwind.” Since then, red has become the key color for Honda tillers.
Honda’s first tiller, the F150. It was revolutionary back then to paint industrial products in red.
In the 1960s Honda also advanced into the generator market. Developers pushed themselves ahead to create new products only Honda could manufacture, to compete with other makers. With a ruling passion for styling, Soichiro Honda gave instructions to the designers to create a non-mechanical feel evident to anyone that gave the user peace of mind, as well as to pay proper attention to the bottom of the product and not to forget to take care of invisible areas.
As a consequence, fitted with switches all in round knob shape and built in a cube-like body, a portable generator, the “E300” released in 1965 was a departure from conventional generators. The product design was easy-to-use and friendly for those who were not familiar with a generator.
Honda’s first portable generator, the E300. Friendly and easy-to-use design.
The E300 was painted in red as well. The color red brought out an advanced, powerful, and reliable image of the E300, and was also perfectly fit for young people to take it to a leisure destination. The E300 which had overturned the fixed image of a generator became a bestseller not only in Japan but also all over the world. After discontinuation of the E300, ever carrying the red key color, Honda’s generators have evolved further and are in action even now in the world.
Engineering capabilities are not the only reason for Honda power products to storm the world. It is also this “red” color which has intuitively conveyed the spirit of innovation and reliability of Honda products created with passion, that plays a significant role for the wide spread of Honda products.
Meaning of carrying the Honda Red. Embodying reliability in the expressive red color
In 2001, Honda designated the red color as a corporate color, “Honda Red”. In addition to an exciting image associated with Honda products and its motor sports activities, the deep rich red color is adopted to convey the Honda brand’s quality feel and engineering capabilities. Honda is committed to continue embodying in its products sound reliability endorsed by high quality and engineering capabilities, expressed in this red, as well as philosophies handed down from Soichiro Honda.
